Channing Tatum: Roman soldier with an American accent

HOLLYWOOD - Channing Tatum is nothing if not forgiving. When a grip accidentally poured scalding water on the actor's groin during production on the swords-and-sandals epic "The Eagle," the movie star didn't fly off the handle and demand the crewman's firing.

Instead, Tatum insisted the fellow stay on for the remainder of the production. He even felt sorry for the guy.

"That poor kid had to run 10 or 13 minutes up to the truck all day for 13 hours for weeks at a time just to try and help us out and keep us warm," said the Alabama-born, Florida-raised actor.

Despite the seriousness of his injury, Tatum, 30, was away from the set only briefly.

"I came back the next day and, sorry to be vulgar, but wrapped it up and kept going," he recalled.

The gracious actor even manages to make lemons out of lemonade. The injury "kind of helped, because I was supposed to be hurt anyway, so any amount of gingerly walking kind of worked with the character," he said, smiling.

Now fully recovered and married to actress Jenna Dewan, Tatum co-stars with Jamie Bell ("Billy Elliot") in this fictional drama based on Rosemary Sutcliff's classic young-adult novel.

Tatum plays Marcus, a 2nd-century Roman soldier who boldly ventures into uncharted northern Britain. His goal is to find out what happened to Rome's 9th Legion - a 5,000-man unit under his father's command - that was sent to the region 20 years earlier and never heard from again. Marcus is joined by Esca (Bell), a native of this uncivilized territory, who pledges his allegiance after Marcus saves his life.

Though they start out as enemies, Marcus and Esca eventually bond as they make their way into the treacherous territory of the empire's northwestern border. Occupied by barbaric tribes, this area is no place for a Roman soldier, yet it is the only place to learn what happened to the lost legion and its bronze-eagle emblem.

Academy Award winner Kevin Macdonald ("One Day in September") directed "The Eagle" from Jeremy Brock's screenplay adaptation.

A history buff, Tatum was fascinated by the fictionalized account of one of European history's greatest mysteries. But more importantly, he liked that it was a drama about friendship between two people from different cultures.

"We were trying to do something different" from epics like "Gladiator" and "Braveheart," the actor said. "We were trying to do something more intimate, maybe a little more realistic."

Tatum listened to books on tape about Roman history during his downtime while on location in the Scottish Highlands, which helped him stay in character. At Macdonald's request, he didn't read Sutcliff's book until the end of the shoot.

"It's definitely [geared] a little younger than the movie is," said Tatum, who nevertheless counts himself a fan of the author.

Tatum said he was dubious at first about playing a Roman soldier with an American accent - "I thought it would be weird," he said - but he soon found it completely natural. Given America's dominant position in the global community, he also found it appropriate and analogous to the times.

Tatum is no stranger to playing soldiers, having previously played the iconic American hero in "G.I. Joe: The Rise of the Cobra," an American soldier in Kimberly Peirce's "Stop-Loss" and a jilted G.I. in the melodrama "Dear John."

"I have an affinity for soldiers and what they stand for," said the square-jawed actor. "Maybe it's because I feel like I'm a coward that I couldn't go [fight for my country], I just respect what they do so much."

Like their characters, Tatum and Bell hail from different cultures and are physical opposites. Tatum is a strapping, 6-foot-1-inch, all-American Alabaman who used to play high school football, while Bell is a slim, 5-foot-7-inch boyish-looking Brit. They got along well throughout the shoot. Both began their careers in dance movies; Tatum in "Step Up," and Bell in "Billy Elliot." (Neither dances in "The Eagle.")

"That kid made everything a competition," Tatum said with a chuckle. "The kid's fast for one thing - the twitchy little wiry thing."

Tatum will play another authority figure in the upcoming reimagining of the quirky '80s police drama "21 Jump Street."

"I promise you it will be the most insane ride you will ever go on," said the actor with a smile.

Of course, the burning question is whether Johnny Depp, who starred in the original TV series, will appear in the film.

"I'm praying," said Tatum. "We're beating on his door so hard. If and when it does happen, it'll be as brilliant as he is and true to form."